WTO Forum Puts Services and Trade Reform in the Spotlight

The services sector represents more than two-thirds of global GDP and employs more people than any other sector, giving decisions about its future a direct connection to livelihoods around the world.

Services trade and the pressure to update global trade rules took centre stage in Geneva on 15 September as the WTO opened its 2026 Public Forum, bringing together business leaders, government officials, researchers and civil society representatives. Held under the theme "Powering the Future", the three-day gathering is expected to welcome more than 4,600 participants for discussions about how trade can create jobs, support development and open economic opportunities in a period of growing uncertainty.

Services Move to the Centre of the Trade Debate

The services sector represents more than two-thirds of global GDP and employs more people than any other sector, giving decisions about its future a direct connection to livelihoods around the world. Services trade volume is projected to grow by 4.8% in 2026, significantly faster than trade in goods, putting the spotlight on how countries can turn that momentum into wider access to income and employment. The Forum's focus reflects the growing importance of services in conversations about development, with technological change creating new possibilities for businesses and workers to reach international markets.

This year's event features a record 540 speakers across 113 sessions, supported by breakout discussions, networking opportunities and cultural events that give participants space to exchange experiences beyond formal debates. As the WTO's largest annual outreach event, the Forum brings people who negotiate trade rules into contact with those who experience their effects, including businesses trying to enter new markets and organisations concerned about whether the benefits of trade reach smaller economies and underserved communities.

Businesses Push for Progress as Uncertainty Takes a Toll

The opening high-level panel, jointly organised by the International Chamber of Commerce and the International Institute for Sustainable Development, examined how technology, geopolitical shifts, climate pressures and changing business models could reshape trade. WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala told participants that more than 70% of world trade continues to operate under the organisation's most-favoured-nation rules, providing businesses with a foundation of stability. Her call for reform focused on repairing weaknesses in the system and taking advantage of opportunities in artificial intelligence and services.

ICC Secretary-General John Denton put a business cost on the current uncertainty, citing studies estimating nearly US$600 billion in lost commercial opportunities over the past two years. His message to WTO members was that companies need progress on the challenges ahead, including room for willing countries to advance cooperation when agreement across the full membership proves difficult. The argument brought a practical concern into the reform debate: businesses face costs from uncertainty as governments struggle to agree on how the system should change.

Smaller Firms Need a Stronger Voice

IISD President and CEO Patricia Fuller highlighted the burden that high tariffs and administrative barriers place on small businesses, which often have fewer resources to manage the demands of entering foreign markets. Growing public interest in trade creates an opportunity to bring more business and civil society voices into WTO discussions, she said. Brazil's WTO Ambassador Guilherme Patriota, who chairs the Dispute Settlement Body, stressed the continuing importance of rules developed over eight decades and reflected in national laws, calling for greater flexibility and an updated rulebook.

The Forum also hosted the launch of the World Trade Report 2026: A Critical Juncture for the World Trading System, placing the debate over reform alongside an examination of what international trade cooperation has delivered. Across the opening discussions, speakers connected the value of preserving a shared trading framework with the need to make it responsive to the technologies, commercial pressures and development challenges shaping its future.